Harold Nichols (American football)
Harold Nichols (born November 26, 1967)[1] is an American football coach and former player. He was the head football coach at Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina from 2009 to 2016. Nichols played college football as a quarterback at Presbyterian from 1987 to 1989. He has worked an assistant football coach at Georgia Southern University, the University of Rhode Island, Bucknell University, and his alma mater, Presbyterian.
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 26, 1967 New Smyrna Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1987–1989 | Presbyterian |
| Position(s) | Quarterback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1990–1991 | Presbyterian (assistant) |
| 1992–1996 | Georgia Southern (GA) |
| 1997–1999 | Presbyterian (assistant) |
| 2000–2005 | Rhode Island (OC) |
| 2006–2007 | Rhode Island (AHC/OC) |
| 2008 | Bucknell (OC) |
| 2009–2016 | Presbyterian |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 21–67 |
Playing career
Nichols played quarterback for head coach Elliott Poss at Presbyterian College before graduating in 1989 as a political science major. He threw for 3,688 yards in his three seasons as Blue Hose quarterback.[2]
Coaching career
Nichols was an assistant at PC for quarterbacks and running backs in his first two years as a collegiate coach under head coach John Perry. Then he spent five years as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at I-AA powerhouse Georgia Southern University. In 1997, he began a three-year stay back at Presbyterian as wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator for head coach Daryl Dickey. In 2000, he began an eight-year run as associate head coach and offensive coordinator at the University of Rhode Island. He then spent a season as offensive coordinator at Bucknell University before getting his first crack at being a head coach after 18 years as an assistant.[3]
On January 14, 2009, Nichols was hired as head football coach of the Blue Hose, succeeding Bobby Bentley.[4] He took over a team transitioning into NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as a member of the Big South Conference. This was his third stint as a football coach at his alma mater. He resigned on November 20, 2016, a day after the team's ninth regular season loss and after eight seasons at the helm of the team, going 21–67.[5]
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Presbyterian Blue Hose (Big South Conference) (2009–2016) | |||||||||
| 2009 | Presbyterian | 0–11 | 0–6 | Ineligible | |||||
| 2010 | Presbyterian | 2–9 | 1–5 | 7th | |||||
| 2011 | Presbyterian | 4–7 | 3–3 | T–3rd | |||||
| 2012 | Presbyterian | 2–9 | 0–6 | 7th | |||||
| 2013 | Presbyterian | 3–8 | 1–4 | T–5th | |||||
| 2014 | Presbyterian | 6–5 | 3–2 | T–3rd | |||||
| 2015 | Presbyterian | 2–9 | 1–5 | 7th | |||||
| 2016 | Presbyterian | 2–9 | 1–4 | 5th | |||||
| Presbyterian: | 21–67 | 10–34 | |||||||
| Total: | 21–67 | ||||||||
References
- "Coaching staff – Harold Nichols". Retrieved January 22, 2009.
- "Presbyterian names Nichols as Head Coach". Retrieved January 21, 2009.
- "Harold Nichols Bio". Retrieved January 21, 2009.
- "Presbyterian chooses Nichols". Retrieved January 21, 2009.
- "Nichols to Step Down as Head Football Coach". Presbyterian Blue Hose. November 20, 2016.